page_title: Desiccation
section_title: Biology and ecology
hierarchical_section_title: Desiccation / Biology and ecology
caption_attribution_description: English: Callistemon hybrid desiccated by heat and dryness (Sydney)
context_page_description: Desiccation is the state of extreme dryness, or the process of extreme drying. A desiccant is a hygroscopic substance that induces or sustains such a state in its local vicinity in a moderately sealed container.
context_section_description: In biology and ecology, desiccation refers to the drying out of a living organism, such as when aquatic animals are taken out of water, slugs are exposed to salt, or when plants are exposed to sunlight or drought.  Ecologists frequently study and assess various organisms' susceptibility to desiccation. For example, in one study the investigators found that Caenorhabditis elegans dauer is a true anhydrobiote that can withstand extreme desiccation and that the basis of this ability is founded in the metabolism of trehalose.
caption: Callistemon hybrid desiccated by heat and dryness (Sydney)
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